Chris Kurtz

Award-winning author Christopher Kurtz began his writing career by collaborating with his big sister, Jane Kurtz, to craft two picture books, Only a Pigeon (Simon & Schuster) and Water Hole Waiting (Greenwillow), a book School Library Journal called one of the best books of the year and a "gem for writing teachers." In 2010, Chris published a young middle grade novel, The Pup Who Cried Wolf (Bloomsbury) and is now finishing revision on a middle grade novel, The Adventures of a South Pole Pig (Harcourt). Chris lives in Portland, Oregon, with his family and his dog, Penny, who reminds Chris every day that he is the very best human ever! (Dogs always tell the truth, right?) When he has to go to work, (and Penny is not happy about this) Chris job shares teaching third grade, speaks in schools to children about how to turn their life experiences into stories, and volunteers for Ethiopia Reads, a nonprofit planting children's libraries in Ethiopia.

"Upbeat...kept kids involved. Gave them the thought that they could be authors."- Mrs. Knott, Minnesota

"It was really cool hearing the story about your family and the life experiences you had that lead you to become an author. It was neat hearing how you came up with ideas for the books you created...I also really liked the pictures you included to add details to your stories and experiences for the students."- Sarah Swenson, Minnesota

"Chris did an awesome job maintaining the interest and attention of both large group audiences. We are fortunate to have been able to schedule him for our 'I LOVE TO READ' kick-off for the month of March. Thank you for the planning and success of this event."- Alice Johnson, Minnesota